The Fox and The Hound
by tinkerbell0403
Summary: I sat down besider her. "So... what exactly are you?" "I'm not even from Western mythology," she laughed at my question. An unexpected meeting with a white fox leads Jacob home after Eclipse, who was this mysterious girl in the house? R&R! Chapter 10 up!
1. Chapter 1: First Encounter

I dragged my blood-matted paws on the forest floor, cleaning it against the grass. The carcass of a buck lay nearby; whatever was leftover of my last meal. Dusk was inching closer, and the forest was quickly darkening.

I think I could cover some more ground before crashing for the night. But then again, how far could I run? How far did I need to run to escape the clutches of this pain that plagued my mind? I'd left my humanity behind, and yet this pain is more than any pain felt by an animal.

No, wait, she took my humanity, my sanity, when she left me with that goodbye.

I shut my eyes, and yet all that filled my vision was her smiling face. Perfect, white, unbreathing.

How long have I been running? I'd lost track of time, the only thing in my mind right now was to get away, far far away from my past.

A breeze blew through the trees, sending whispers to my ears. And then, unexpectedly, a new scent entered the clearing.

I didn't hear anything approach. I didn't feel anything approach. I should be on alert now, but this scent was not unpleasant, carried to my nose by the wind behind me. Strange as it was, it was actually quite… intoxicating. A perfect mixture of lilac, lavender and a slight tinge of rose.

Snapping back to my senses, I spun round, a growl ripping through the air between us. My eyes focused, and I met it for the first time.

A pair of sparkling, emerald eyes peeked out from behind the bushes. I threatened it with another low growl, trying to ignore the alluring scent. The leaves rustled, and the owner of the emerald eyes stepped out.

If I were in my human form, my jaw would have dropped.

A gorgeous fox entered the clearing, its pure, white fur glowing under the moonlight. It was tiny, maybe reaching up to only my legs in height. Its eyes were intelligent, too intelligent to belong to an animal… Kind of like my eyes, really, slightly human-like.

Wait, what was a white fox doing here in Washington D.C.? And how can a white fox have such eyes?

The fox sat down, its neat and furry tail sweeping up the leaves on the ground. I didn't know how to react. It didn't seem like it meant any harm, but then again, how could I be sure? It stared at me with its emerald eyes, unmoving.

The fox suddenly stood up again, growling. And then, it darted back the way it came, as fast as lightning.

And somehow, I was hot on its tail.

--

**AN: Yes guys, I'm back, and somehow my last story is gone. Yes. Don't know how. But it's gone. Plus I don't have any more inspiration for that one, so I didn't bother to resubmit it. Here's something I thought of during the holidays, and let us all pray god I finish this one. Hahaha.**


	2. Chapter 2: Rather Embarassing

The moon rose for the third time since the chase begun. I'd been chasing that white fox for three days now.

Where was I? I wasn't sure. I didn't know how or why, but the only thing that mattered now was to catch up to that fox. I felt this urgency to confront it; as if it would… as if it would bring harm to the people I love.

Her, maybe.

I shook my head. Now's not the time.

The fox weaved through the trees like a white phantom, never stopping. The distance between us never closed. It was always those dozen yards between us.

I kicked my legs faster, feeling my paws land on the dirt with even paces as I advanced. The fox darted forward as well, and then disappeared through some trees. I leapt forward, and landed where the forest abruptly stopped.

This place was familiar. Very familiar. A house stood in front of me, and I could smell gasoline and rusty metals nearby. This was….

_Home._ 3 days of pursuit led me home.

The fox was sitting between the house and I, its head tilted to the side. Then it darted towards the house, and went in through the door before I could react.

_Oh no, Billy!_ Alarmed, I ran towards the house, phasing as I went. I didn't want to knock down the entire door, for god's sake.

I burst through the doors, and spotted Billy sitting in his wheelchair calmly watching a baseball game on television. He looked up with an amused expression.

"I thought I heard you approach, Jake. Welcome home."

"But… Where's the fox?" I was lost. Utterly lost. Didn't he see it come in?

"What fox?" He asked, confused.

"It just… I just saw it coming in! It's gleaming white, you couldn't have missed it!" I nearly shouted. Was this some kind of sick joke? A hallucination?

Just then, I heard the clatter of plastic against wood. We both looked up to the kitchen door, and my eyes widened.

A teenage girl with shoulder-length, jet-black hair was standing in the doorway, dressed in a white shirt and jeans. She had one hand over her mouth, the other holding out in front of her awkwardly.

I glanced down at the cup on the floor. When I looked up, I realised what had made her drop the cup. Her eyes were looking at me up and down. The she turned around and ran back into the kitchen.

This was not good. Not good at all. I needed pants and I needed them _NOW_.

Billy seemed to read my mind and threw me a pair of my old jeans from the floor. I caught it and slipped it on in the blink of an eye. I could tell Billy was trying very hard not to laugh, but failing terribly. After I made sure no part of my lower body was exposed, I coughed loudly.

The girl from just now stepped back into sight, peeking through her fingers at me. "So, uh, I'm not naked anymore." I stuttered.

She dropped her hands, and burst out laughing. Billy, triggered by this sudden outburst, couldn't take it anymore laughed along too. This was _way too embarrassing_. I raked a hand through my hair, sending flakes of dried dirt into the carpet. I kicked my foot along the floor and waited for them to stop the laughter.

Billy stopped eventually, coughing as he did so, and then said slightly more seriously, "Ah yes, Jake, this is the daughter of an old family friend of mine. Natasha, meet Jacob."

The girl, still stifling her laughter, stepped forward. Now that her whole face was under the light, I could see her features better. And if I were any other normal guy, I would have stared.

She had an oval face, slightly tanned, and high cheekbones. Her lips were exquisite, the bottom lip full enough to make it look luscious and yet not sleazy. Her hair framed her face perfectly, one side tucked behind the ear. A silver, cross-shaped earring dangled from that ear. She had a slim figure, very proportionate, with curves in all the right places.

Underneath her delicately carved eyebrows sat her eyes, which were probably the most captivating on her face. They looked normal, like any other dark brown, almond shaped eyes. But they had some kind of attraction force, pulling everyone into them…

She extended her hand, the tips of her long, slender fingers perfectly done up in a French manicure. I shook her hand quickly. She broke into a shy, yet dazzling smile.

Aw man, if I weren't so caught up in _her_, I could have immediately fallen in love here.

"Natasha's mother just passed away recently, so she's moving in to Forks. Jake could you please help to show her around? She would be going to your school too."

My head snapped up. He expected me to what?!

After all this while of running he expected me to just stroll back in like nothing's happened and take this _KID_ around?!

That was _IT_. That was my cue to get my furry butt out of this hellhole. I felt the trembling start again, the power and the heat building up in my body. Screw it, I didn't care if I burst out naked in front of her again.

I looked up at the both of them; ready to snap, and then I made the mistake of looking at her.

The trembling just stopped short and I no longer felt any reason to run away. Her eyes held me, with a tinge of fear and worry; it was as if they were commanding me to stay. I tried to phase again, but I couldn't feel anything. Well, it was more like not wanting to feel anything.

Maybe I should take her around. Maybe she'll take her off my mind.

Crap. Nevermind. I muttered a 'sure' under my breath and shot up the stairs, slamming the door to my room. This was a very screwed up day. Very screwed up indeed.

--


	3. Chapter 3: Omelets and Notes

I woke up to the annoyingly cheery chirping of the birds by my window. I pulled the covers over my head and tried to get back to sleep, to no avail. After another 5 minutes of over-cheeriness, I threw the covers back and crawled out of my way too cramped room.

The moment I stepped out into the hallway the aroma of eggs hit me like a tidal wave. My stomach threatened me, and the next moment I found myself dragging my half-dead body into the kitchen. She was dressed in a black V-neck sweater over a white shirt underneath this morning, with dark blue jeans that really showed off her legs. And she was cooking.

Wait, why am I even looking at her legs? My eyes drifted up, and…

_Nevermind._

She turned around and set the plate of omelets on the table, flipping loose strands from her ponytail back. "Morning!"

I nodded back, taking a seat and putting my head on the table. Everything was so blurry. It was so much easier when I didn't have to register any of this. The omelets continued to distract me from sleep, and soon I gave up.

Natasha sat down opposite me, after taking off her apron. She cocked her head to one side and looked at me with a glint that was almost amused. I tried to tune out the image of her cooking breakfast for me, _specially for me_, since Billy never ate breakfast with me. I expected her to start eating too, but she just sat there looking at me, the omelets, and then back up at me.

"What?!" I snapped, getting seriously annoyed by the way the day had started.

She jumped back a little, the amusement replaced by irritation too. "I'm sorry, I was just wondering what the hell you did to have you dragging yourself back home, completely delusional, half-dead, and naked. And that sure is some way to thank someone who had just got up to make breakfast!"

"Sorry," I muttered. Somehow I can't stay mad at her. The moment I steal a glimpse into those eyes I lose focus. "Thanks."

She sighed and picked up a fork. I felt kind of guilty, for some weird, obscure reason. So I decided to strike a conversation.

"So, uh, how old are you?"

"17," she answered coolly without looking up. Uh oh.

"Oh. I'm 17 too." _Stupid answer._

"You don't _look_ 17."

"Yea it's a… well… The omelets are good."

"I know what you are, Jacob. My parents were good friends with Billy."

_What?!_

"Uh… What?"

She put down her fork and crossed her arms on the table. "I know what you are. And I do perfectly well know why you don't look your age."

I swallowed. What kind of _family friend_ was she?

She grabbed the empty plate from under my nose and went to the sink. I went back upstairs to wash up and change. When I came back down, Natasha was walking around the living room looking at some photos.

"Is this your mother?" She asked, pointing to the photo of my family at First Beach.

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry about what happened to her. She was a nice lady…" She muttered.

"Yeah. Whatever. Let's go."

The walk to school was slightly awkward. I caught myself constantly stealing glances at her, but she didn't seem to notice. She just walked on, staring straight ahead. Maybe she was sad. I mean her mother just died right? Her eyes didn't show any emotion though. Her eyelashes were long, I realized, and that faint glimmer of sunlight always seemed to bounce off her hair, making it even shinier.

"I would appreciate it if you'd stop staring at me."

"Oh. Sorry." Flustered, I took a few steps forward. The rest of the trip passed in silence. We got to school, and I took her to the admin office. I waited outside while she got her documents. When the doors opened, I saw Janitor Joe staring after her with his mouth hanging open, and the few male students in there gaping after her too.

I snickered. This girl was almost destined to become the Queen Bee. I ignored that little nagging bit of my mind where I imagined myself strangling the dudes.

"The guys are drooling over you already," the words were out of my mouth before I could think.

She rolled her eyes, and suddenly a very seductive smile was on her face. "Jealous?" She crooned.

Bella's face flashed through my mind that instant, out of the blue, her eyes going goo goo as she stared into the face of that bloodsucker. I wanted to slap Natasha. I wanted to slap _myself_.

All this while I was thinking 'hey, she's kinda pretty, kinda nice', and now this. This is stupid!

I turned away, disgusted, and walked quickly down the hallway. I expected her to follow, and I was formulating what I would say, but when I reached my first class, she was nowhere to be found.

I stormed in, plunked down into my seat, and continued to fume silently. I looked up just in time to see Quil walk into class, and his eyes widened completely when he saw me. He rushed over and settled in his seat, beside mine.

"Whoa. I thought I'll never see you in school again, man."

I snorted. "I'll take that as a 'welcome back'."

"Welcome back, bro," he patted me on my shoulder. "Why come back when you're so unwilling?"

"Long story. Let's just say it involves a fox, a chase, and some weird girl who just popped up in my house."

"Who?"

"Some family friend I heard, her mother just died so she's staying with us. She's in this school too."

Quil opened his mouth to say something, but was cut short by our Trig teacher entering.

"Oh, Mr Black, good to see you back," He smiled from behind his horn-rimmed glasses, and began the roll-call. Something hit the side of my head and landed on my table. I flattened out the piece of badly crumpled paper, and Quil's handwriting jumped into sight.

_Q: This is a guess, but is it that new girl in the hallway just now?_

J: Maybe.

_Q: The one that half the guys in school are gaping after?_

J: Probably.

_Q: Holy crap. You are going to get hell if you didn't look so dangerous._

J: Yea I know I'm not talking about this anymore.

_Q: More like writing about this. What's her name?_

J: Quil, you've got Claire. Shut up.

He rolled his eyes at the note.

_Q: I'm simply asking what's her name, bro. What the hell._

J: Natasha… Something.

_Q:… you don't even know her NAME?_

J: What?! It's not like I _like _her or anything.

_Q: I never said anything like that, you thought of that yourself dude. Which may mean…_

J: Shut up. She's a pure, typical, high school Queen Bee.

_Q: ? Really? She seemed quite nice to everyone._

J: …

_Q: Nevermind._

I re-crumpled the note and stuffed it into my pocket. I couldn't register anything that the teacher was saying. I wanted to run back into the forest. Bella's face was popping up more and more often, and I couldn't take it anymore. Plus, s_he's_ being so nice to _everyone_. What's her evil plan? Get all the guys in this school? Who the hell did she think she was?

_Some extremely talented girl with a damned hot body._

I mentally kicked myself, turned back to the blackboard, trying to tune out what had just happened in my mind.

--

**AN: Hey guys, yes Chap 3 is up, and I do hope I get more reviews, cos I'm currently staring at the number 2 and going like "aw man". Hahahaha nevermind yo. To Terra106, I'm not answering any of your questions... yet. MWAHAHAHAHA!**


	4. Chapter 4: A Great Afternoon

I slouched my way to the cafeteria after a torturous Biology class. As I stepped in, I spotted Natasha walking towards a table, surrounded by the junior nerds of the school. I couldn't believe my eyes. _Her? Nerds?_ I was totally missing the connection.

I shuffled into the line, but I kept watching them in disbelief. I saw her get up from the table to go to the water fountain, and then I spotted Caleb striding towards her. She turned around and almost bumped into him. He was smirking, and he asked her something. She answered, her face hard and she tried to walk away. But he stretched out an arm in front of her, trapping her between the water fountain and his arm. His other arm was sneaking towards her waist…

I didn't care. I jumped over the railing and almost ran towards them. But before I could, there was a sickening crunch, and Caleb was on the floor, one hand on his nose, the other on his gut. His face was crunched up in pain. Natasha was shaking out her fists, her face icy cold.

"Want to try that again?" She asked. Caleb just winced on the floor. She then turned to me, the same ice cold expression on her face. "Yes?"

"Nothing. Awesome punch…"

The corner of her mouth lifted ever so slightly. "Thank you."

And she just strode away like nothing ever happened.

--

When classes ended that day, everyone knew about Natasha. Almost everyone was talking about her as I was walking out of the school building.

"Did you see the new girl today…"

"Man, she is one hot chick…"

"I felt like I learned nothing for the past three years with her around…"

"You should have seen Mr. Barker's face, he was totally flustered when she went to the board today…"

I saw her talking to another one of the nerds, whom I was pretty sure was called Nick. I could hear their conversation from where I was standing.

"…I'll think about it, thanks Nick!"

A bright grin appeared on his face. "No problem. So if you decided to come, we'll meet right after school ends."

"Sure. See you!" She waved and headed towards the school gates. I took a few quick strides and caught up with her.

"Hey."

"Are you going to explain why you suddenly had PMS and stormed off today?" She asked sarcastically.

"Sorry. I had some stuff on my mind… And I was definitely _not _PMS'ing." No way was I going to tell her.

She sighed, "Anyway, thanks for the 'concern' today."

"I wasn't concerned!" The words spurt out before I knew it. And some little part of my brain rammed itself against a mental wall.

"Sure, sure. Whatever." She answered coolly and walked on.

I mentally kicked myself again. Why did I have to screw up every conversation we had? But wait, why did I even bother in the first place? That's right; she must have drugged the food! Or it's because she's so physically attractive, but I wasn't the kind to go for the physique.

What the hell was wrong with me?!

"Are you coming, or not?" Her voice woke me from my mental battle. She stood a few yards away, waiting.

"Yeah, sorry." I caught up with her again. "I'm really sorry about my… attitude. I have a lot on my mind now…"

_I really should be angry at her now…_

"Guessed so, or you wouldn't be running away from home. Sorry for snapping at you this morning. What do you want for dinner? I'm thinking of lasagna…" She smiled.

_Oh nevermind._

"Whoa, that's a change. It's good. My mom used to make them."

"Mine too. I learnt it from her. I'm gonna stop by the grocery store to pick up some things."

"I'll go with you."

She laughed, "Thanks for the offer, but it's alright."

"Naw, you need someone to help you carry the stuff."

"Hey, who do you think I am?" She punched me on the arm. "Didn't I just totally kick ass this morning?"

"Well these are two different things," I grinned.

"Oh sure," She rolled her eyes, landed another punch, this time on my gut, and darted off. We raced each other to the grocery store; both of us reaching at the same time, and so began a heated debate on who was faster.

"Aw come on, I touched the ground before you." She threw me a bunch of tomatoes, which I skillfully caught.

"But my feet were in the boundaries before yours."

"Nuh-uh! So not counted! Accept defeat like a gentleman would, Jake!" She continued to hurl vegetables and weird packets of things at me, but of course, nothing was hard to catch. Finally, she ran out of things to throw at me, and we went to the cashier, still continuing the debate.

I almost had to bite her hand off to be able to carry one of the heavy brown bags. I didn't know how a girl of her physique managed. She was still complaining that she was perfectly able to handle those bags when we got home, though I saw her shaking out her arms after she set the bags down on the kitchen table. I felt strangely happy that afternoon.

I stayed in the kitchen to do my homework while she cooked. Then I suddenly remembered something.

"Hey, was Nick asking you out today?"

She had her slim back to me, the ribbon of the apron around her waist. "Why do you need to know?"

"Just curious…" The aroma of melting cheese was filling the kitchen.

"What if I answered yes?"

"He's a nerd, he's a downright nerd who is probably in love with his graphing calculator," I sniggered at the thought of him hugging his calculator to bed.

"I find some nerds more appealing than jocks, you know."

I stopped laughing, "Why?"

"You saw what that asshole today was trying to do. The only thing they want is the body, not the person."

"Wait, you mean you got 2 guys asking you out on the first day of school?" I was surprised at the sour tone my voice came out.

"Make that one. Nick was asking me to join the school Chemistry club, damn you."

"Oh. Right." She left the beef to simmer, and walked over to the kitchen table, looking over my homework.

"You got this, this, this, and this wrong," she said, pointing at the random scatter of numbers on my notepad. She then picked up a pencil, scribbled down some formulas and passed it to me.

"Apply these. You messed up all the formulas…" She returned to the stove, and I spent the afternoon consulting her about homework and staring at her while she worked.

_Remind me to slap myself later, yeah?_

--

**AN: I'm feeling spurges of inspiration these few days rawr. **

**Darling trishiekins, no the omelets didn't have expired bacon.**

**Terra, I'm still not answering!! xD**

**NycBlackout89****: I'm not answering yours either! xD and I would appreciate it if you don't yell at me, thanks. **


	5. Chapter 5: Beachy

That night's dinner was wonderful. I saw Billy freeze after taking a bite of the lasagna, scenes of the days with my mom flashing through his eyes. But really, it was _awesome_. I immediately crashed after that, still tired due to my lack of sleep from my 'escape', and also drowsy from the overworking of my stomach.

The next few days passed without much difference. Natasha would be down early, to cook breakfast in that pretty apron my mom used to wear. And somehow to my slight disappointment, Billy had decided to join us for breakfast. After being _intruded upon_ during breakfast, I would walk to school with her, and after our racket on that first day, our short trip got much noisier.

It was a weird feeling, having her around. I was kind of happy, but at the same time, I wanted to slap myself for reasons yet uncovered.

So here I was, lying in bed staring at my poster-spammed ceiling, after a rather interesting day with Natasha getting asked to the school dance by multiple males, wondering why I was being so mellow when I should be freaking out _really badly_.

_Bella_.

I shivered, but smiled as her face swam into my mind. She hadn't been in my mind for a few days already, and I was missing the memory of her touch and her smile. Now, I let the memories fill my mind, though I knew I had to pay for it later.

I stopped suddenly. I knew why I was mellow. I hadn't been thinking of Bella, so there was no payment to be made. What had kept her off my mind, then?

I could only think of one answer, and I would rather _not _go there.

My ears picked up the rustling of feet against sand, and I looked out of my window. I saw a feminine figure sitting on the beach, facing the sea. It was too dark to see who she was, but I had a pretty good guess.

I jumped out of my window, landing with a soft thud, and walked towards her. The moonlight bounced off her silky hair that fluttered behind her. She turned around as I approached, and a light smile played at her lips.

"You know, even though you're not cold, it's polite to actually put on a shirt."

I sat down beside her and stretched my legs out. "What? Does my being half-naked bother you?"

"No, not really," She laughed. "Can't sleep?"

"Same to you. Wha'sup?"

She hugged her knees up to her chest and rubbed her arm where the T-shirt couldn't cover. "Just thinking of stuff, cooking made me think of my mom, you know?"

"Yeah, me too. I mean, your cooking reminded me of my mom, not that I can cook for anything…"

She chuckled, "I learnt everything from her, it's kind of weird to not have her around anymore."

"How did she…"

"She went out one night to get some milk. The police showed up at midnight. She got caught in the crossfire of a robbery." She stared out to sea.

"I'm sorry…"

"What are you saying sorry for? It's not like it's your fault… Haha, thanks anyway. I miss her, but life has to go on."

"Yeah, I guess so…"

She had a point.

She turned to me, throwing a scent of minty shower foam in my face. "What about you? What's bugging you?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Come on, maybe I can help!" She nudged me gently, the exposed part of her arm brushing against my skin, sending shivers up my torso. I made my next mistake of looking at her, and finding her misty eyes gazing back at me.

"There's this girl, who is completely in love with another guy, who happens to be one of my not-so-liked people. And…" The words were out. Damned.

"The guy's a vampire, I suppose."

My jaw dropped. "How did you know?"

She shrugged, "Gut feeling. You looked like you could kill someone just now."

_Whoa, maybe she could help. _"She's marrying that guy. I just… well…" _Have an undying love for her that is killing me now. _

"Let go."

"What?"

"If it's not doing you any good, and since she's determined enough to marry the dude, give up. You're not going to get anywhere with this."

My brows furrowed. "I'm not asking for this to be _returned_."

She snorted. "Oh right, sure not. Then why is she still in your mind? Seriously, stop being so masochistic and let go already."

"What's wrong with standing by the sidelines and doing things to make her happy?" I moved away slightly. For god's sake I was trying to make her happy, what's so bad about that? What's so bad about being a friend?

"Because, even if she appreciates it, you are only a _friend._" _Ouch._ "And standing on the sidelines watching _her _and _her perfect guy_ while you know you still love her is _hell._ Wake up from that dream already, some things are meant to belong in dreamland," She said it all with a face as cold as ice.

"You know what. Forget I ever mentioned it. You don't understand it at all," I stomped my way back into the house. When I got to my room, I saw her still sitting there, staring out. I slammed down back into my bed, the joints of the bed protesting very loudly.

Who did she think she was? How could she understand? How could anyone understand?

Oh, that's right; I almost forgot she was a Queen Bee. They don't feel. All this time I was caught under her evil spell.

I don't need Bella to return this feeling. I just want her to be happy, is that so wrong?! But she's with the wrong _guy_!

I can take this pain, and I might still have a chance. Yea, maybe.

--

The next morning I noticed something missing. There was no aroma from the kitchen this morning. There was no sound coming from the kitchen either. But I wasn't particularly concerned. After last night's brawl I didn't expect to be here anyway.

I snorted, how noble. She's the one who started it.

I ran to school, having had to make breakfast for myself. When I got to school, I was just in time to see Natasha going into the Biology lab for her first lesson. She glanced at me, shook her head, and stepped into class.

What the hell was that about?!

I couldn't focus in class. I was preoccupied with speculations and fuming about what she said last night.

I didn't wait for her after school that day, and headed straight home. Quil and Embry came over, and we stayed in the garage for most of the afternoon.

I gave them a brief overview of what happened over the past few days, excluding actual details, but simply mentioning that she was completely… annoying.

"But she cooked, right? I mean, normal QBs are too busy worrying over their nails to be bothered about this kind of thing," Embry said, after listening to my tale. He was leaning against the tool table, a coke in one hand, my jackhammer in the other.

"That doesn't mean anything. She doesn't get anything. She has no right to just stride into my life and comment on everything!" I was half under my new project, and I pulled the wrench a little too hard, the handle bent. "Damnnit…"

"What was she lecturing you about anyway?" Quil asked, spinning a screwdriver between his fingers.

I grunted. They understood.

"How did she find out?"

"How do you _think_ she found out?" I almost flung a nut at Quil.

"What did she say _exactly_?"

I replayed the conversation in my head, and related as much as I could remember to them.

Embry sighed, "She has a point, you know."

"What?!"

"You hold on too much. Move on, dude, she's made her choice."

"Whatever. I'm not talking about this anymore."

Quil shook his head, and walked out of the garage with a slight smile on his face. The next moment, I heard it; the sound of her shoes against the gravel.

"Damnnit!!"

Embry laughed. And then my wrench slammed into his gut.

--

**AN: Heya, another chapter, and please go read the mega Xover fic by speaker-4-the-undead! xD It's seriously epic.**

**Terra, keep waiting yo. xD**


	6. Chapter 6: Here Comes the Bride

"Hey Natasha, what's up?" Quil called out. I remained under my car, scowling.

"Oh, I was just wondering where the noise was coming from. I didn't know there was a garage here."

"Jake, you didn't show her the garage?" Quil asked. I flung a bolt at him.

"I'm going back to the house now; do you guys want anything to eat?"

"Naw, we're good," Embry answered, and then kicked me. "Jake you want anything?"

I gave another appreciative grunt.

"I'll take that as a no," she laughed. _Laughed_. "Alright, see you all…"

It took me a moment to register that she wasn't mad at me. I sat up so quickly I knocked my forehead on the car.

"Ow! Did she just _laugh_?"

"Yes, Jacob, I just did," She rolled her eyes at me, and turned to Embry. "Are you two staying for dinner?"

"If it's not a bother…"

"No problem, I'll run over to the store and grab some more stuff then… I know you guys have big appetites…" She laughed again and started walking back to the house. I was left sitting beside my car, completed confused.

_She wasn't pissed at me? Why am I so happy that she isn't pissed at me?! Argh!_

"There, she isn't pissed at you. Or at least, doesn't appear to be."

"Shut up, Em," I slid back under my car, trying to distract my own thoughts with machinery.

Quil walked over, leaning against the car, "Really dude, I don't see why you're rejecting her so much. I mean she can really take your mind off—."

"Don't you dare…" I snarled.

"Fine, fine…"

--

Dinner was, as always, delicious, but Billy was shooting me weird looks. Well, he had all the reason in the world to do so, considering my attitude that night.

Let's see. I was squished next to Natasha, Quil and Embry opposite me, and Billy at one of the table. I was pretty sure I had a sour look on my face. Quil and Em were having a nice conversation with specific B in question, and I was simply jabbing at my food.

"…Right Jake?"

"What?" I broke out of my trance, and looked past Quil at the calendar on the wall.

"HOLY SHIT!" I jumped out of my seat and ran out off the door before anyone could respond. I still had enough sense to preserve my clothes before I felt the flames burst on my back. My paws landed on the soft earth, and almost immediately I was shooting through the forest, towards a familiar place, but one that I should have been avoiding.

Suddenly Quil's voice rang inside my head. _What the hell are you doing, bro?_

_It's the day. It's her wedding day, now!_

_What? You're going?!_

Embry's voice joined in. _What did I miss?_

_He's going for Bella's wedding. Go get Sam and the others._

I growled, but still dashing through the undergrowth. _Why the hell do I need them?_

_Just in case, Jake…_

I shot through the rest of the forest. I didn't need them.

--

I crouched silently on the tree not far from where he was, with the human girl. This must be her, the girl he was talking about. I watched as the vampire swirled her over, saw her throwing her arms around him, and watched as they broke into a slow dance of their own.

Tsk, no wonder Jake was so caught up in her. For god's sake she made a choice and she's still doing this to Jake. I don't think I've met anyone so selfish in the world. She was so _blind_.

But then again, she did have a strange beauty about her. She looked… breakable. _Sheesh. _I rolled my eyes. That's what guys _still _like? That kind of girl who's so _breakable _that always needs their protection? My god, after so many years you would've thought some things have changed…

I shifted a little. One of the wolves hidden amongst the trees, overlooking this event, looked up at the branch where I was. But then, no way could they see me, I even stopped my scent.

The wolf looked away, back at the _happy couple_. I rolled my eyes again. He doesn't know when to give up, and the other don't know when to just freaking _make a choice already_. This is so stupid! My nose twitched, just like any other time when I was pissed at something.

Jake's expression suddenly changed in the moonlight. I sensed the change in atmosphere. He was going to phase, I was sure.

And all of a sudden, the wolves were on it, dragging him back into the forest. I saw the human girl reaching out to him with a pained expression, and the vampire pulling her away. I jumped through the branches, darting here and there. I had to reach home before the wolves did.

My paws hit the branches so lightly, and my movement was so swift it just sounded like a breeze to anyone else around. Of course, at this speed, any movement would sound like a breeze. I zig-zagged the rest of the way back and darted through the door before the wolves had even reached halfway. I guess he had run off again, no blaming him. I sighed.

Billy was sitting in front of the TV, and looked up when I went in.

"Do I have to do it _again_?" I asked in a bored voice.

"Give him some time. Perhaps tomorrow…"

I sighed, "Fine…"

--

**AN: Vampire Crusader: Heyo thanks! Haha I didn't like the ending either. I was totally WTF-ing at the imprinting part. **

**coco swift: Well I haven't planned anything BIG for the cullens and bella, but I will consider :D**

**Terra: Thanks girl!**

**And to all others, sorry for a bit of the delay, cos I was too addicted to sims for the past while, and simply couldn't tear myself away from running the lives of my sims. Yes, I am evil.**


	7. Chapter 7: Revealations

_I'll kill him._

That was the first thought that ran through my mind when Bella said it.

I would freaking kill him if he ever turned Bella, _my Bella_, into one of _them_.

_You know, maybe she has a point. You've got to let go. _

Unknowingly, Quil already read the scene from my mind. I growled at him and shot deeper into the forest.

_Jake, chill, please._

Embry's voice joined in.

_Nevermind, let him run for a while._

Slowly, I felt the wolves' voices disappear one by one. Sam commanded them to go away.

I sprinted, feeling the pull of my muscles, finally stopping only when my legs gave way. I didn't know where to go. I didn't know what to think. I didn't know… how she could do this to me. Why? I helped her! I supported her! I had sewn her heart back together when that bastard left her! How could she do this to me?!

I tried to run again, but there was no energy pumping into my legs. I dropped to the ground, finally defeated.

I loved her so… Why couldn't she see I'll treat her so much better than him? Why?!

All of a sudden, there it was in the air again. That intoxicating scent of lilac and roses. I snapped around.

And then, there it was, amongst the trees.

It gleamed white as it did the last time, its emerald eyes staring unblinking at me. I was suddenly energized and got back up on my feet.

Everything was still. The leaves stopped its rustling, the bugs stopped their racket, and nothing was heard. Even the air was still, though its scent kept wafting over to my nose.

All was déjà vu, it turned on its heels and bolted through the trees, and I followed closely behind. The trip was much shorter this time though, as I shot through the undergrowth into the clearing where my house was, the others were waiting, and they wasted no time in surrounding the fox.

Even though it was surrounded by 6 unnaturally big wolves under the moonlight, its eyes showed no fear. It twitched its whiskers, its eyes unblinking as it faced the snarling faces of 6 wolves.

Without warning, there was a sudden burst of purple smoke. There was a burst of snarling and growls. Out of the mess, there came pitiful yelps of pain, but I wasn't sure who it was from.

When the smoke cleared, I looked around and noticed Paul with the fox between under his paw. There was an unstopping flow of blood coming out from the deep bite marks on its body. It laid beneath his paw, trembling slightly, its beautiful emerald eyes going in and out of focus.

A sudden weight of guilt was dropped onto my shoulders, I didn't know why. The fox's eyes met mine, and a shockwave ran through me, though I couldn't really say what it was. I took a step forward, gingerly.

"What the hell are you guys doing?!" I looked up and saw Billy wheeling towards us at top speed. He broke through the circle and saw the fox at Paul's feet. His face turned as white as the fox's fur.

"You… Phase back NOW and carry her into the house. NOW!" Billy yelled. I'd never seen my dad so enraged. His face was white with fear and anger, and the others were as clueless as I was. We phased back quickly, and I picked up the bloody body of the fox. It was still trembling, its chest heaving up and down with each painful breath it took. It was somehow painful to look at too.

"Leave her on the sofa…" Billy said in a tight voice. I did as I was told, but couldn't help asking, "Dad, who's 'her'?"

"You don't know what you've done…" He said again, and then spoke quietly to the fox, "You can change back now, please, and your wounds need to be attended to. I'm sure the boys won't tell, you're safe here…"

The fox's eyes seemed to cloud over for a moment. I looked over at the others. Their faces were as blank as mine.

And then, something that made my jaw drop happened. In front of my eyes, the fox, in a small burst of smoke, disappeared, and in its place laid…

"Holy shit…"

A slim female body appeared on the sofa, with blood-stained tears on her white shirt. Deep wounds were inflicted on her torso, and blood was still oozing out at an alarming rate. Her hair was matted with blood and sweat, and spanned out messily on the sofa. Her body twitched as each second brought on another spasm of pain.

"Jacob, go to my room and grab the book on my table!"

I couldn't move.

"NOW!"

Billy was pressing a white towel to her wounds, and sweat beads were forming on his face. It was Quil who regained his composure first and got the book out in a flash. He held the towel as Billy moved away slightly and opened the book. It was thick, but the paper was yellowed and flimsy, bound together with yellowed string.

Billy started chanting a string of words that sounded like gibberish to me. Then, a string of golden symbols started drifting out of the book itself. They floated over to where the girl laid, dissolving into her body.

Billy kept on chanting, and a short while later, the spasms stopped. She laid peacefully on the sofa, her chest moving up and down as her breathing steadied. The wounds had healed. I stepped forward slightly, unable to believe everything I'd just witnessed.

Her name came out as a whisper from my lips.

"Natasha…?"

Billy slumped back into his wheelchair. "I should've told you earlier… It's all my fault." He turned to the 6 of us. "Whatever you've seen tonight, you are not allowed to speak of this to anyone. Anyone at all. Are we clear?"

"How do we know she would keep our secret?" Sam folded his arms across his chest. I had the sudden impulse to punch him, but I controlled myself.

"She has been keeping it for the past 30 years; do you still doubt her ability?" Billy answered coldly. Sam shrugged.

"Jake, bring her up to her room. Everyone else, I would appreciate it if I could get some sleep now."

I picked her up, still in a daze and walked up the stairs, afraid that every step I took would shake her.

I placed her on her bed and tucked her in. She whispered a small "thank you", before slumping into the pillow. When I went back down, everyone else was gone, and I found Billy wiping off the fresh bloodstains on the sofa. I snatched the rag from him and finished the rest.

"I should've told you earlier… This wouldn't have happened…" Billy wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. "Her mother entrusted her to me…"

"What… happened to her mother, exactly?"

Billy sighed and started wheeling himself back into his room. "I'll let her explain it to you if she feels better. I don't even know if she'll ever speak to you all again after this…"

I picked up the book that Billy was reading off. Oddly enough, it was opened the opposite way from our usual books. The characters that jumped into view were not anything I'd seen before; it was a strange language that wrote sentences vertically and not horizontally, and also from right to left.

Firstly, she wasn't Caucasian.

Secondly, she was a close friend of Billy's.

Thirdly, and most importantly, she wasn't human.

I couldn't see the link.

I just hoped she could forgive me enough to tell me what the hell was going on.

--

**AN: Hey guys I'm back with another update! **

**cocoswift: well this chapter answers your question, doesn't it :D**

**Terra: she always has gotten on mine hahaha**

**speaker for the undead: well, answers your question too.**


	8. Chapter 8: Damn the Raging Hormones

She didn't come down the next morning. I didn't dare to go up to her room, in case she was still resting. Billy was nowhere to be found either, and I didn't want to risk anything.

Nothing could get into my brain in school. Quil threw me a note again in class.

Q: How's everything now?

J: I don't know. She didn't come down in the morning.

Q: Oh.

J: Who bit her?

Q: I don't know. The smoke was so thick I couldn't tell.

J: I see.

Q: Tell her I'm really sorry.

J: Sure.

After getting home, I threw down my bag and went to the kitchen. When I looked out of the back window, I spotted her in a white shirt, sitting on the beach.

_Aw shit. I can't… damned._

After a short mental battle, I still walked out, holding two glasses of water. I sat down gingerly beside her and handed her a glass.

"Thanks."

"I'm… um…"

"No need to apologize," She said, taking a sip. "It's not your fault. Your friend Paul was the one who nearly chewed my torso off."

"But I was the one who ran away, really, I'm so sorry."

She smiled slightly, hugging her legs to her chest. "Apology accepted, then."

"You're not human either… Should've known earlier…" I rubbed the glass between my hands.

"Neither of my parents were."

"Hmm?"

She held out her glass and dipped a finger inside, chanting a string of words. The water slowly changed into a deep shade of purplish-red. She then passed the glass to me.

"It's real wine. It's not the high school chemical trick."

I sniffed it. The aroma of high class wine drifted to my nostrils. "So… what are you, exactly?"

She laughed and ran her fingers through her wind-swept hair, "I'm not even from Western stories, I doubt you'll understand anyway…

"Let's just say, I'm a shape-shifter too. In Chinese, and some Japanese folk tales, there's a spirit known as the fox spirit. They were beautiful women, stunningly beautiful women, but they were actually vixen, having gone through years and years of meditation. But that's only folk tales, as time passed the fox spirits evolved along with everything else. They were no longer made, they were born.

"In the folk tales, the fox spirits were the women who would draw the eyes of men everywhere, usually they were the badass ones, or in modern sense, bitches who would go stealing the husbands of other human ladies. Well, they still are in modern days.

"All of us have the basic powers, besides from appearance we can control our scent, which is why you didn't notice me the first night. We can manipulate our scent to our target's preference. We also have something similar to hypnosis, for easier feeding."

"Feeding?"

There was a sarcastic smile on her face. "We live by feeding off the _yang _energy from males. In Chinese culture, the world has two different energies: the _yang_ energy, associated with males, and the _yin_ energy, associated with females. Apparently we have too much of _yin_ energy, for a balance we need to feed off the _yang_ energy of males.

"That's when my mother rebelled. She hated the kind of living and ran off to the US 50 years ago, fell into the river of true love and married my father, and then had me."

"Wait… then you're…"

"I'm 35 this year, literal age, but we stop aging physically at 18," She laughed at my expression.

"Oh."

She took the wine back from me and took a long drink from it. "Somehow, my mom still aged after she met my dad. Since no one from the tribe has ever really… run away before, or gotten married for that matter, so well… I guess that's the first time it's happened."

"So how did your mom…"

She sighed, "Some time ago, my mom suddenly asked if I wanted to spend the holidays at a friend's place, which is here." She suddenly smirked. "I've been to your house many times before, Jake, even before you were born, and yes, I did see you in diapers."

"WHAT?!" I was horrified. This was so not happening.

"Anyway… She passed me a letter to give to the friend, namely Billy. I didn't object, so I just came here. You probably wonder who my dad was. He was a werewolf too. That's why I have some… extra abilities apart from the basic seduction crap."

"Whoa. Really?"

"Yea, that's how my family knew Billy. Billy was the best man at my parents' wedding. So, when I arrived, Billy read the letter and broke down. My mom sent me here for protection. The tribe had found her… and well… she sent me here in hope that the wolves can protect me from the fate that she and dad faced."

She smiled lightly and looked down. I patted her back. All of a sudden her head was on my shoulder, and tears were running down nonstop from her eyes, drenching my shirt. Her breath came in sobs, and she grabbed her sides just like how… someone did.

I was quite frozen. But then, when a girl was crying on your shoulder, what else could you do? I wrapped my arms around here, hoping to give her some comfort.

"I know… it's no use… hic to cry about this… but still…" Her words were choked with tears. "I miss her so much! I'd much rather… fight by her side… than to run away like this… I'm such a coward!"

"Aw, come on…" I rubbed her back gently. "Your mom wants you live on happily, since you're still so young and can do so much more…"

"Why? Why must they take her life? She didn't do anything wrong! And I can fight! Why must she send me away?"

"Come on, Nat," _Nat? NAT?! I was giving her a nickname already?! _"Your mom wants you to live your life, keep going on, do what you want to do. Let's not let her down, eh?"

I let her cry for a while more. When her sobs lessened to silent tears, she drew back and sat up straight, wiping her face with the back of her hand. "Thanks, Jake, sorry 'bout the shirt though…"

"No problem…" Her hand left her face and I gasped. "Your eye's…"

Her left eye was a brilliant shade of emerald, just like the one on the fox. Out of nowhere, there was a ripple of an unknown force rocketing through my body. As quickly as it came, it vanished.

"Oh damn!" She quickly looked down on the sands, and picked up something brownish. "These damned contact lenses…"

"Why do you need contact lenses?"

"I have an Asian face. Do Asians usually have green eyes?" She rolled her brown/green eyes.

"Oh. Is that another fox spirit thing?"

"Well, different families in the tribes have different colours. My mom's were green. The leaders have violet eyes. Well, we're supposed to have the ability to hide our eye colours in public, but maybe because of the wolf thing, I can't seem to do that. Lucky I'm living in the age of contacts, then." She forced a laugh out of her throat.

It was quiet for a while after that. I watched her silently. The sea breeze threw locks of her hair back. She squinted her eyes slightly against the wind, the tear streaks on her cheeks slowly vanishing as the wind dried it. My gaze followed her neck down, the view being cut off at the slightly low V-cut of her shirt. I took my eyes away before I could think of anything else. Well, I didn't exactly dislike the fact that she had two buttons unbuttoned, and she had rather attractive collarbones.

The sleeves of her shirt were rolled up, revealing her tanned yet flawless skin. Then, I spotted something on the inside of her right wrist.

"Hey, what's this?" I took her right arm; completely skinny compared to mine, and turned it up. There was a small tattoo of a 5-petal flower there. "What flower is this?"

"It's a plum blossom. Everyone of our kind has a tattoo of a flower on their wrist, kind of like identification cards, really. It's something like our codenames in the tribe. It's supposed to correspond with our personalities, I think."

"Oh? What does yours mean?"

"Well, the plum blossom blooms in winter, and during the harshest months it's in full bloom. I think it's the whole 'able to survive hard times' thing."

"Then that's it! You'll get through this time, I'm sure. I believe in you," I said, grinning. She smiled back.

Unconsciously, I ran a finger over her tattoo. Her skin was cool. Not vampire cold, but just cool. She shivered under my touch.

The air was suddenly still. I looked up and found her eyes looking back into mine. Suddenly a very useless scene from childhood came into mind. The scene in "The Little Mermaid" where Sebastian the crab was singing for the prince to kiss Ariel.

_Go on and kiss the girl~_

I swallowed hard. I felt her pulse increase, and a flush of colour rushed into her cheeks. Her breathing came in and out quickly. I swallowed again, and then leaned in slowly, carefully, afraid to break the silence around us.

_Damn these raging hormones._

I landed the kiss lightly, afraid she'll get freaked and turn away. When she didn't, I added a bit more pressure and got her response. Her lips were soft and sent a whole wave of warmth through my body like never before. I drew an arm around her waist and pulled her closer, feeling the fabric of her shirt on the skin of my arms. There was a small moan from her lips, and that sparked off something inside me.

I entangled my fingers in her hair and held her face to mine. My lips left hers as I left a trail from her lips to her jaw. Her hands were suddenly on my chest, pushing me away.

"Jake…"

"Mm?" I didn't want to stop. I continued to kiss her, from her jaw up her ear.

"Please… Stop, this isn't right." She pushed even harder now. "Jake. Stop it!" She gave a final push, and I finally broke off. She was looking down at her lap.

"I'm sorry… I'm not ready for this," She stuttered and started getting up.

"Yea… Sorry. I was going a bit out of line…" _No you're not sorry. You sickass pervert. You still want her._

"Let's pretend this never happened," She turned without another word and ran up into the house. I sat there, not knowing what to do, staring at her back as she disappeared behind the door, the taste of her lips still lingering on mine.

--

**AN: omigosh such a kick out of writing this chapter. Ok guys, in case you're still wondering what the hell the fox spirit does, wikipedia is always there. I'm basing mine on the CHINESE one, since I'm Chinese and I'm more familiar with it. There are still apparently Japanese and Korean ones, which are similar ones. I changed the myth a bit, to fit in with the story, harhar, but just note that like any other fox spirit, Nat is one freaking hot babe, though not out to seduce guys and then take their life force. Yes.**

**And yes speaker for the undead, you got it right. hahaha**


	9. Chapter 9: Pancakes and Aprons

I quickly changed my contacts before anyone else could marvel at the astonishing colour of my eye, and stared at my reflection in the mirror. Staring back at me was a mask of perfection. I don't think he saw anything beyond that.

The scene kept replaying in my mind. Well, I couldn't deny that I didn't like it; he was an excellent kisser, starting gentle and then picking up the pace. I could still taste his lips on mine, and I wanted more of that.

But then again, I doubt any boy in my few decades of life ever liked me because for ME. They are, after all, hormonally charged males who went ogling at any girl who walked past with big boobs, big asses, and nice hips, I don't think he was any different, really.

I shook my head and laughed silently at myself.

_Stupid. To be considering that he actually liked you in that way…_

_But hey, it felt nice, didn't it?_

_Shut up. So what if it did._

_He's been nice to you and all… It won't hurt, would it?_

Great. Now I was talking to myself. Simply awesome. I closed my eyes and cleared my mind, letting the sound of the waves reach me from the beach.

I sat there for quite a while, but I couldn't erase that feeling from my mind. I had been kissed before, but none as lingering and sensual as this. I wasn't hungry, so after preparing dinner I left a note about feeling giddy and took a shower, before locking myself in my room for the afternoon. He didn't come by my room, something I was thankful for.

I didn't get much sleep that night. Everytime I closed my eyes the scene kept replaying itself, though after a while I fell into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning, I woke up with huge eye bags. Not particularly surprised, I went to the kitchen after washing up to prepare breakfast. As I walked down the stairs the aroma of pancakes reached my nose. I was surprised to find Jake by the stove, flipping pancakes with a huge bowl of batter on the messed up counter.

He must've heard me coming down and turned around, his face breaking into an awkward grin, no doubt still thinking about what had happened the day before. I looked at him from the kitchen door, and despite the mental storm that was still raging, I burst out into a fit of uncontrollable laughter as I saw the way too small apron hanging around his neck, barely fitting over his torso.

His expression changed to one of annoyance. "What?!"

"You… you…" I couldn't get any words out. The sight was… priceless in many ways. He stood by the stove holding up a spatula and staring at me like I was mad, but that just made the laughing fit worse.

After a hell long time, the laughter settled to giggles, and I was lightheaded from all the laughing so I sat down at the dining table.

"So, you've decided to cook for the night?" I asked, trying my best to keep the laughter out of my voice and keeping my eyes busy by observing the interesting patterns on the table.

"Um, yeah. I think you deserve a break, anyway."

"Right," I nearly had to stuff my fist in my mouth to knock down the armies of 'hahaha's storming their way up my throat. Oh god, that image was seared in my mind forever. "Spaghetti, eh?"

"Yeah, and what the hell are you laughing about?!"

That did it. I erupted into another fit of giggles.

"Have you… seen yourself… in a mirror?"

"Um… No."

"You… should," I choked on the last word and wiped the tears streaming out of the corners of my eyes.

"Um, I know this is kind of tight—"

"Kind of? _Kind of_?" I was going to die there on the chair. His brows knitted together, and in one fluid motion he ripped off the apron (which I might add was slightly sexy) and turned back to the stove.

"Right, right, sorry…" I finally stopped laughing. The atmosphere changed, and I wasn't really keen to piss this wolf off. His shoulders un-tensed, the tight muscles clearly visible under that white T-shirt he was wearing.

I stared into his back, my eyes drawing lines from that messy ponytail down to his broad shoulders… then to the arms… then down his back…

I felt a rush of blood to my cheeks and I touched it with my fingers. Unfortunately my cheeks were heating up, which meant that I was blushing, which probably wasn't good.

And due to the lousy luck that I had, he had to turn around at that exact moment.

"Are you alright? Your face is totally red," he asked.

"Oh I'm fine, really, just…" He walked over a placed a hand over my forehead, making matters worse. I couldn't stand it when he touched me. There would always be an enormous tidal wave of heat spreading from the point of contact, pulsing through my body. I couldn't pull back either. Well, I never said that feeling was _unpleasant_, did I?

"Damn Nat you are really heating up. I'll call in sick for you in school today—"

"No! No need, I'm fine, really…" I pulled back, slightly unwillingly. "I'll go wash my face."

I hurriedly left the kitchen and went to the bathroom. Sure enough, my face was shining a few shades of red. Damn the raging hormones. I'm supposed to be 35! Why were the hormones still raging like a teenager's?

This was not my day. First eye bags, now this. Let's hope he doesn't decide to kiss me again.

_You know you want him to._

_Shut the **** up._

I built up a nice mental barrier between my rational self and my delusional self and went back down after I was sure my face was normal. He was already seated at the table, two plates of fresh, steaming pancakes on the table. I took my seat and dug in.

"Nat," I looked up. He had a serious look on his face.

"…yeah?"

"I'm not going to just pretend nothing happened."

"…I'm sorry I don't know what you're talking about."

_Please don't bring this up. Please don't._

"Come on. You kissed me back!"

"I was crying and you cheered me up. I thank you for that but I don't think we have anything else to say about that particular matter," I said coolly.

"But—"

"Look," I put down my fork. "I was confused—"

"Don't use that as an excuse. I can tell from the way you kissed me back. You were not confused and you seemed pretty damned sure."

I couldn't meet his intense gaze. This was getting out of hand.

"Please, Jake, can we please leave this be? I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"No I won't leave it be until you give me an answer!"

"End of conversation!" I pushed back my chair and dashed out of the house.

"Nat!"

"Leave me alone!" I felt tears stinging in my eyes. He didn't get it, did he? I could hear him catching up behind, but I wasn't in the mood to face him again. I darted into the woods and shape shifted, disappearing into the trees.

-=-=-=-

**AN: Alright guys another chapter!**


	10. Chapter 10: It's Bella

"How long have you been feuding already?"

"I don't know! 2 weeks? And we're not feuding, she's avoiding me, so I can't go talk to her even if I wanted to. Quil, pass me the wrench," I stuck my hand out, felt the wrench being dropped into my hand, and continued to whack the pieces of metal in front of me into place.

Embry snorted, "That sounds like feuding to me…"

"Just… corner her or something! Talk this out and get this over with!"

"And how do you suppose I do that?"

"She's at the beach now, y'know…" Embry took a noisy sip from the soda can.

"I seriously can't just walk up to her, 'Hey, I wanna sort things out,' can I?"

"Technically you can," Quil said coolly. "What happened to cough cough sputter sputter?"

I stopped the wrench in my hand. "I don't know… I think I… imprinted."

That was the line that completely caught their attention, wherever it might have been.

"Dude, are you serious?!"

"Well she had been wearing contacts. The other day one of them fell out and it was like 'whoosh' and my mind was blank. All I could think about after that was comforting her 'cos she was crying her eyes out."

"…that sounds like it. Have you told Billy?" Quil asked.

"No! I'm not even sure if she's the one. I mean, I'm a guy, and she's really, really hot. I might have just kissed her thanks to my raging hormones…"

"Well, it doesn't seem like that bad a thing, since you've finally stopped moping over you-know-who…" Embry kicked at the tire of my car.

"Shut up."

"Gosh, just go ask her out! She's hot, that is enough of a reason for any guy to ask a girl out. Maybe you did imprint on her, you haven't seen both her eyes, right?"

"How the hell am I supposed to do that when she is running away every time I walk into the same room? Quil you are stupid. And I so do not like her because she's hot."

I could just imagine Quil rolling his eyes, "Just go and ask; shout, yell, kidnap her."

Really, I don't know how I got talked into it.

I slouched down to the beach. I saw her clothes lying on a piece of driftwood. Her scent was almost unnoticeable, but there was a figure standing on the small cliff nearby, ready to jump. My muscles tightened. This was not a day to be cliff-diving. The sky was a steely gray, with dark clouds rumbling just slightly off the coast.

She jumped, her hair whipping around her in the wind, her body forming an elegant curve and then straightening out as she hit the water head first. I jogged to the water's edge, and breathed a sigh of relief as I saw her head bobbing slowly towards shore. Her eyes hardened as she saw me, but there was no way she could swim back into the sea just to avoid me.

_Oh. So this was what Quil meant…_

She rose out of the water, slowly, combing her hair back out of her face. She had on a scuba diving top, hugging her curves perfectly, and a bikini bottom which showed off her legs. I swallowed hard and tried to ignore the sudden pounding in my head.

Her eyes were cold now, her face blank as she walked past me to where her towel was.

"Um, wait!"

She either did not hear me, or she was ignoring me. I went with the latter. I turned and went after her, catching her by her elbow, tightening my grip as she tried to break free.

"Let. Me. Go."

"Come on, please, just listen for a moment, will ya?"

"Fine," She spun around, flicking seawater from her face onto mine. "What?"

"Will you… go out with me?"

_That was the stupidest thing you just asked. Real smooth Jake, real smooth…_

She looked at me incredulously, and barked, "Are you STUPID?!" Her green eyes were flaming with anger and irritation now, but somehow the wave that I had expected never came. Instead, a surge of words went tumbling out of my mouth before I knew it.

"Look, I really have no idea what I did to piss you off so much, but all I know now is that you've been completely dominating my mind since that day we kissed, and it's driving me nuts to see you so angry at me for reasons yet unknown. You must be like, the hottest girl in school now or something, and I can't believe it myself either, that I Bella just floated out of my mind replaced by your—"

There was a sudden stinging pain on my left cheek. Natasha had her right hand raised, the anger in her eyes suddenly replaced by hurt. Wait. This was _not _making sense.

"What the hell was that for?"

"See! This is exactly why I'm so mad at you! For these freaking long years I've met countless guys who have told me they're in love with me and I was their everything, and I thought you were different, Jake, I felt that you were different!"

"Eh?"

"Oh my god! How dense are you?!" She broke free of my grasp and stood in front of me, waving her hands in front of her body. "You're just same as the rest of the hormonally crazed males out there! You know what?! One day this body would be _gone_! What have you left to like about a girl then? At least in the past they looked for girls with ability, but now? I can't believe you're so _shallow_!"

"What?! You're getting mad at me because I think you're hot?"

"No! I'm getting mad at you for liking me because you think I'm hot! Can't you find anything else that you can truthfully tell me that you like about me? Name me anything, Jake, anything, and I'll reconsider you as a person. Argh!" She threw her hands up in the air in defeat and started walking around in circles. "I can't believe I thought that you were _decent_, Jake; I can't believe I thought you might be different from all the other guys who were around me; I can't believe I fell for some guy like you!"

"Wait. What?" I swear she just confessed.

She covered her mouth and then slapped herself across the face, "I'm waterlogged. Ignore the last line. Gosh, just… leave me alone, please. Until you can think of something else that you can say you like about me, leave me fucking alone!"

"Whoa, she really said all that?"

I returned to the house to find Quil and Embry settling themselves down comfortably on my couch. My entrance was of no surprise to them; they looked up, sighed, and let me rant it all out. Very clearly, a certain young lady had already made her way into the house.

"She must be… the first girl—possibly the only girl—I know, that has gotten mad at someone for telling her that she was hot," Embry said, propping one leg up on the coffee table.

"But then, if you think about it, she has met decades of dirty-minded old fools who drooled after her. Usually this kind of women would be showing off their bodies. Natasha's different…" Quil sighed. "You've got yourself a good girl, Jake, it's now all up to you and your ability to convince her."

At that moment, Billy wheeled himself into the room.

"Jake, I just got a call from Charlie. It's Bella…"

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**AN: *Bows* Hontou ni, gomen minna! I know I have been MIA for a while, I was kind of busy watching J-Dramas since it's the holidays now. I'll try to update more now Thanks for the reviews everyone!**


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